Cliché
by Paper Pieces
Summary: The same event through two sets of eyes... PART 2 UP!
1. Cliché

Part 1

The bass throbbed violently in her ears. The music beeped and bleeped from the speakers, setting the steady beat to which she moved back and forth. Lights gyrated around the dance floor as if they were dancers themselves. The air smelled of sweat and alcohol, feeling thick with moisture against her skin….but she didn't care. 

            Her mind was free. It flowed as her body did, graceful yet jolting, smooth yet rough. It was hard to describe where the excitable techno beat had taken her, somewhere far away, somewhere calming, stress free, no worried, no troubles, no responsibilities.

            Only one more thing would make it more perfect…

A warm hand landed on her hip. In an instant, her guard was back up. She grabbed it, panic gripping her brain as hard as she gripped the strange appendage. 

Turning, she went through the familiar process of preparing, mentally, physically, emotionally. It could be anything, anyone…

In a half an instant, her guard and hand fell, but only one shattered to the ground. He always did that to her. 

"You scared me!" She shouted over the harsh melody of sounds. 

"Sorry! I think I'm gonna go!" 

She looked at her watch. It was still early, only around ten. But she knew he was a busy man, saving lives and all that. But then again…so was she.

"You're calling it a night?!" She asked clarifying what she had just heard. 

 "Yeah!" He replied, sensing the hint of a mockful tone her voice. 

He smiled with the reply. His face had an innocence about it, a strange intangible naivety, like a choir boy with a twinkle of youthfulness in his pale blue eyes. But when he smiled, his charm broke through any walls or emotional barriers you may have erected. He had the smile of a thief, one that could take everything from you willingly, but wouldn't. And yet through the sly and the adolescent, he was different still. He had been to hell and back on a strange nightmarish roller coaster, and that gave him a unconventional wisdom that commanded respect.  It was like he had a natural disguise to keep you guessing. Or at least that's what he did to her.  

"Do you mind?!" He asked loudly putting his mouth close to her ear. He was standing almost completely still, she noticed, an odd contrast to the group of eccentric dancers around them. 

"Let me pay the tab and I'll go with you!" 

Without a moment of hesitation, she began to push through the crowd surrounding them. He followed. She wondered what was on his mind. This eyes had seemed distant, void of the familiar glimmer, like only half of him was there, the other trapped in the world of his mind. 

They approached the bar. The bartender looked up at them expectantly. She held out a rolled up twenty dollar bill. The leather clad, blue haired woman took the money with a scowl and walked away as if she had insulted her beyond words. 

"She's had a rough day." She remark to her companion.

He had walked to the other side of her, causally leaning on the bar, clearly gone astray in thought. 

She watched him for a moment as he stared absently into the metal counter laced with neon lights. The orange, red, and green danced off his eyes as if they were trying to replace some lost magic. 

"Is something wrong?"

"Hm?" His face snapped up to meet her eyes. 

"Are you alright?" 

"Yeah, just a little tired." 

"Do you want me to drive home?" Her voice sounded more concerned that she'd wanted it to sound. Maybe he wouldn't notice…

He smiled again. God…that smile…

"No, I'll be fine." He replied as the woman walked back and handed her the change. She held out the coins to him. 

"I don't have any pockets." 

He nodded and reached toward her hand. The brief contact of his fingers on the palm of her hand made her skin tingle and her stomach jump. Biting her lip, she forced it back down and followed as he began their walk for the exit. 

Fishing the keys out of his pocket, he began to hum along the song that played loudly behind them. 

"Don't know the words?" She heard herself say. 

He laughed. "I do. I just thought I'd spare you of the sound of my singing voice."

She smiled. "…which is code for you don't know the words." 

He was quiet for a moment and look at her with a smile. "Fine, you're right." 

"I knew it." She giggled as he pushed open the thick metal doors and held it while she exited first. 

They were quiet the rest of the way to the car. It was moments like that she wished she had the nerve to tell him about her feelings. It sounded so cliché, and she knew it, but there's a reason things get used over and over to become a truism like that…it was usual the most blatant way of expressing the experience. He made her feel so alive and good about herself. Even before she even knew who he was, he had given her encouragement and tried to help her. He was a great friend and a wonderful teammate. 

But that's all Jesse would ever be to her… 

…And Emma would have to accept that.


	2. Angel

A/N- This is one is darker than the first, so be forewarned. And just to clear something up, I'm not a die-hard religious person. Religion is mentioned, but it's only a building block to the real point. I apologize if I offend anyone. The song is 'Pray' by Tina Cousins. BTW Thanks to Ally and Nights for the support! I couldn't have gotten this done without you!

Part 2 

The atmosphere was crazy, lights, heavy beat, loud techno music. Hyper underground clubbers were bumping and grinding across the neon lighted dance floor. 

Not exactly his kind of scene…but for some reason it seemed like hers. 

Maybe not at present, but he could tell she had done it before. Tonight, he was seeing a whole new side of her. 

She seemed free of everything, no burdens, no constraints of the real world. It was amazing to see her like that, like a bird granted sudden independence. 

A sigh escaped his lips, suddenly, one of sorrow, frustration, and heartbreak. He'd hoped to have fun tonight. In his line of work, nights off were few and far between that one had to enjoy them when they came around. Unfortunately, his mind was elsewhere. 

Elsewhere, more exclusively, in the past and future. 

His brain had somehow entered a mode of reevaluation. Thoughts of his life began to come back, ones of the fear and pain he'd known. Overbearing was the still present dread since he almost lost his blonde feline friend to a power-crazy socio-path. His body could still feel the anxiety, his stomach the worry.

Was any of it worth it? The things he'd done, experienced, seen, survived, the people he'd hurt, killed, and almost lost. The last stung his mind like a slap across his skin. 

So many situations, crisis's averted, he wondered when luck would run out. When would he be punished for the fortunes he'd absorbed? Surely, it couldn't last forever. 

And when it did end, what would he be left with? He'd known neglect in his life as well as friendship and love, and had so much fear revolved around a revert to the former. His current family was all he had. Could they be taken from him?

His legs suddenly stood him up. His thought were making him crazy. The guessing game of reflection wasn't going to make him feel any better. Maybe he need a distraction. His eyes wandered back to his companion. 

She was still dancing in the middle of the floor, completely oblivious to all other negative thought or energies surrounding her. His first thought was to join her, to maybe partake in her freedom and drain his mind of thoughts for a moment. 

And suddenly he was weaving through the crowd towards her. With her back to him, he could feel her sweat on his face and bare arms. His skin tingled at the moisture, sending a shiver up his spine. 

            Gently he put his hand on her hip to turn her around. In that one second, he felt her whole body tense. Her hand slammed down hard on his gripping it hard as if to squeeze the life out of it. He knew somehow her mind was being rushed with thoughts, thoughts of fear, pain, and even anger. Because of his presence, her pure moment was gone, tainted by the real world. He realized what he had done and that that moment couldn't return. 

            "You scared me!" She shouted with relief when she saw him. She was smiling, teeth showing brightly beneath her red lips. 

            "Sorry!" He shouted back, trying to shrug off his guilt. She was obviously fine, not even perturbed by it. "I think I'm gonna go!"  

            Her head titled to check her watch. He knew it was early, but he was suddenly tired. He was tired of thinking. The need to craw into bed and sleep crowed his mind, fighting to surface. 

            "You're calling it a night?!" 

            She was being serious to a point. Her smile displayed a hint of teasing in her question. He couldn't help but smile. 

            "Yeah!" His answer was nonchalant, like it didn't matter as much as he knew his brain needed it. "Do you mind?!" The automated response. His caring nature made him ask her feelings. That same nature cause his pain in the first place. 

            "Let me pay the tab and I'll go with you!" 

            Like it was some dire emergency, she began to elbow her way back to the bar. He watched her bob and weave through the sea of people, before he began to follow. With the quick strides, he was soon steps behind her. 

            They approached the bar. He waited while she handed over her last twenty for their drinks. His eyes wandered to the metal bar top. His reflection shown back at him will mirror like clarity.

            He fought to hold back his contemplations. They made his stomach and heart sink and shiver and his throat force its way upward. How could he live with so much to lose? He'd never been one for risks, yet that's what his life was, one big unpredictable gamble. 

"Is something wrong?"

He looked up at her. "Hm?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, Just a little tired." 

"Do you want me to drive home?" Her dark eyes and voice mirrored her concern. It was a familiar tone with her. She was helpful, kind, and caring…It was comforting.

"No, I'll be alright." He replied, smiling reassuringly. 

The grumpy bartender walked back almost angrily and held out the change. She reached for it, only taking one eye off him. A small smile crossed her lips, as though she was internally musing about something.  He wondered what she was thinking. 

Suddenly, she held out her own hand. "I don't have any pockets."

He nodded and reached forward towards her hand. That's when he saw it.

She stood under a single white lights, illuminating her light skin. The dark dress deepened in contrast to her. Suddenly, his mind was pelted with an image.

 A statue he saw once, outside of the old cathedral two subways stops from his house….a stone woman with white wings and smoothly chiseled smile…eyes gentle… hand outstretched towards him. She was an eternal symbol of help. A caring hand to those who needed it. A source of comfort…

An angel

In an instant, the strobe light was gone and his hand had already retrieved the coins from her hand and safely placed them in his pocket. 

She bit her lip as he stared at her, astounded the sudden memory. As if on autopilot, he turned, hand returning to his pocket to search for the keys. Without a word, they began to leave. 

As the two neared the door, thought, a familiar song pounded from the speakers and into his mind. 

"What a miracle is life

The fields are high and fruit is ripe

So hold out your hands

Yeah, hold out your hands

And you are the same as me

You breathe the air I breathe

And we don't understand

Yeah, we don't understand

And if you don't ask questions you won't know why

So say a prayer for the dying while there's still time."

The voice was beautiful, flowing over the thumping bass and alternating up and down beats. The keyboard danced over the whole package. He couldn't help but hum along. 

"So pray for good and pray for love

Pray for peace and pray it's enough

Pray for salvation

Pray that we're right

Pray one day we open our eyes and

Pray for them and pray for us

Pray one day we can live as one

Pray for the children whose time is to come

Just pray they forgive us for the stupid things we've done"

'Pray' 

Religion had never been high on his priority list in life. His upbringing, he considered, was Christian, if you defined it loosely. God had only been brought up in his household through exclamations. As an adult, he'd never given it a second thought. 

Maybe that was the answer. Maybe the future wasn't out of everyone's control. Maybe there was a constant in the universe somewhere. Perhaps not God, but something out there. Something that had given him this life. Something that wanted him to help and save and care. 

"Don't know the words?"

He looked over at her and laughed. Her smile was dancing across her face again. She was so care free. She didn't worry. She always had hope. She always had faith.

So even if he was wrong, and odds were against him, there was always faith. Faith in his team, faith in the world, faith in himself. He could always pray. 

"I do, I just thought I'd spare you of the sound of my singing voice." He replied.

"Which is code for you don't know the words."

She was witty…and beautiful…and caring…like an angel. Maybe she was his angel, like the statue on 4th street. She was his saint, his friend, his prayer…. 

"Fine, You're right." 

'…you're always right.' Jesse thought as he and Emma walked to the car in silence. 


End file.
